[Chief Rum]

Singing The Free Agent Blues

DETROIT LIONS

Roster Strength +/-: -5.5

Key Players Lost: WR Shawn Jefferson, WR Bill Schroeder, G Ray Brown (ret), G Eric Beverly, T Matt Joyce, DT Dan WIlkinson, DT Shaun Rogers, ILB Wali Rainer, OLB Barrett Green, CB Otis Smith, CB Alex Molden, SS Corey Harris

Key Players Signed: WR Travis Taylor, G Marco Rivera, G Corbin Lacina, OLB Charlie Clemons, CB Fred Weary, CB Artrell Hawkins, S Rogers Beckett

Comments: All in all, I think the Lions did fairly well, considering all that they lost. They were practically certain to be one of free agency's losers, but they were able to do some things so the fall wouldn't be so hard. They lost a lot of receivers, but Taylor is probably better than any of those guys and should make for a fine starting pair with young Charles Rogers. Rivera and Lacina are both solid gaurds, so the Lions hsouldn't see much fall off on the line, where they lost three starters. Clemons will help to replace Green at one OLB spot, and the secondary threesome of Weary, Hawkins and Beckett are an overall improvement over who they had there last year. One problem: the Lions have done nothing to replace Wilkinson at DT, and he was absolutely critical to the team's ever so limited success last year.

TENNESSEE TITANS

Roster Strength +/-: -5.6

Key Players Lost: RB Eddie George, G Tom Ackerman, DE Jevon Kearse, OLB Raymond Wells, CB Andre Dyson

Key Players Signed: None

Comments: The Titans came into free agency with the worst cap situation of any team, so it is little surprise they didn't sign a soul. Like the Dolphins, though, they had the depth to come off looking not too bad from this. Still, this is an obvious step back for the team. It starts weith Kearse, one of the better defensive playrs in the league. After that, though, they got off fairtly easily. Wells was the best of the rest, and he wasn't eventhat good. Ackerman is a decent guard at best, and George and Dyson were at best part time starters.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Roster Strength +/-: -6.0

Key Players Lost: FB Terrelle Smith, WR Jerome Pathon, G Kendyl Jacox, T Spencer Folau, T Victor Riley, DE Darren Howard, DT Grady Jackson, ILB Orlando Ruff, OLB Derrick Rodgers, CB Fred Thomas, CB Dale Carter, FS Victor Green, SS Tebucky Jones (ret)

Key Players Signed: RB Antowain Smith, TE Byron Chamberlain, OLB Danny Clark, CB Charles Woodson, S Corey Harris

Comments: As bad as the Saints' free agency ended up, it could have been much worse. Fortunately for the Saints, they headed off some of the damage by resigning C Jerry Fontenot, one of the best centers in free agency, OLB Sedrick Hodges, a solid linebacker talent, and CB Ashley Ambrose, their best corner last year. Overall, though, the Aints lost a stunning number of players. Three starters on the line walked, and none of them were low-end starters either. One of the best fullbacks int he league left. A defensive line starter and the team's best pass rusher also took off, along with two of the three starting linebackers. Two of the top three corners, and both starting safeties are also gone. Ouch. Ambrose's return and the signing of top notch corner Woodson will at least help the Saints there. That should make for one of the better corner duos in the league. Harris is a very solid safety and should replace Jones, and even be better. Clark will start opposite of Hodges at OLB. The ILB spots, both sets of line holes, and fullback remain open, though, which is the main reason this has been a harsh free agency for the Saints. Replacing Riley and Folau at tackle will be especially difficult.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Roster Strength +/-: -6.8

Key Players Lost: RB Antowain Smith, RB Kevin Faulk, FB Larry Centers (ret), FB Fred McCrary, TE Fred Baxter, TE Christian Fauria, WR Troy Brown, G Damien Woody, T Matt Light, DE Bobby Hamilton, DE Anthony Pleasant, DT Ted Hamilton, ILB Ted Johnson, ILB Don Davis, OLB Mike Vrabel, CB Tyrone Poole

Key Players Signed: RB Eddie Goerge, G Chris Gray, T Maurice Williams, DT Grady Jackson, DT Gilbert Brown, ILB T.J. Slaughter

Comments: The Patriots were the most oft mentioned free agent losers as the days progressed, and the final numbers don't seem to tell too different a stroy. That said, they didn't come out the worst and in some ways even seemed just as good as ever. In sheer numbers, no team canmatch what the Saints lost. They provided players to numerous teams around they league and didn't bid for a single one of them. George will replace Martin, but they didn't sign a FB or another TE to replace their losses there, nor did they get a replacement at WR for Brown. They were deep at WR and TE, though, so maybe this isn't an issue. On the line, they actually may have come out ahead in replacing Woody and Light with Gray and Williams. On defense, Jackson and Brown will try to partly replace the trio of starters allowed to walk there, while Slaughter was added to an already deep linebacker corps (none of the three linebackers to leave via free agency were starters, if you can believe it). The team still has yet toa ddress the loss of Poole at one corner spot or their lack of defensive ends to replace the two they lost. Still, I am rather shocked that they have come out as well as they have.

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS

Roster Strength +/-: -7.4

Key Players Lost: TE Itula Mili, WR Bobby Engram, WR Darrell Jackson, G Chris Gray, G Steve Hutchinson, T Walter Jones, T Matt Hill, DE Lamar King, DE Chike Okeafor, DT Chad Eaton, ILB Randall Godfrey, CB Willie Williams, FS Doug Evans, SS Damien Robinson

Key Players Signed: RB Michael Bennett, G Tom Ackerman, DE Regan Upshaw, DE Aaron Smith, ILB Bernardo Harris, CB Artrell Hawkins

Comments: The Seahawks didn't just lose a lot of free agents, they lost a lot of good ones. They were able to make some small recoveries here and there, but there was no way they could come back from it completely. On offense, the receiving positions and the line were especially hit hard. Four starters, including mammoth star tackle Jones were replaced by one average guard in Ackerman. Two of the top three receivers and the best tight end are also gone, without replacements coming back. Three of the four defensive line starters also walked, although here the Hawks at least got back some quality defensive ends back. Harris is a relatively poor replacement for Godfrey, one of the best linebackers in football. Hawkins is also a downgradfe from Williams, albeit slight, and no safeties were brought in to replace the two that were lost. The Seahawks are really going to pull off some magical moves to come back from this one by next year.

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS

Roster Strength +/-: -8.3

Key Players Lost: RB Thomas Jones, RB Michael Pittman, WR Keyshawn Johnson, G Cosey Coleman, G Kerry Jenkins, DT Warren Sapp, FS Jermaine Phillips

Key Players Signed: RB Curtis Martin, WR Johnnie Morton, G Mike Compton, S Jerome Woods

Comments: The Buccs don't look too bad in the moves they did, excpet in two glaring areas. They did what amounted to nothing at all to replace their biggest losses in Sapp and Coleman. Compton isn't even really up to replacing Jenkins, much less Jenkins. And they didn't sign a DT at all. They did pretty good elsewhere. Woods is an upgrade next to Lynch in the defensive backfield. Morton isn't a big drop off from Johnson at WR. And Martin has more talent and skills than either Jones or Pittman. The Buccs aren't really allt hat bad off, but how they replace those two line stars could be a key to their offseason.

CHICAGO BEARS

Roster Strength +/-: -8.4

Key Players Lost: QB Kordell Stewart, QB Chris Chandler (ret), FB Stanley Pritchett, WR David Terrell, G Corbin Lacina, G Chris Villarrial, T Mike Gandy, T Aaron Gibson, DT Keith Traylor (ret), DT Bryan Robinson

Key Players Signed: FB Fred McCrary, G Kerry Jenkins, G Zack Wiegert, T Barry Sims, DT Michael Myers

Comments: I have noted before that some higher free agency rankings were probably undeserved. I think this might be a case of the opposite, where a team didn't really do quite as bad as it seems. The team has yet to try and replace Stewart and Chandler (I'm not sure how the game is rating Grossman), but I have to think most of the guys they can get will be likely improvements over those two, and they don't even need to get ina bidding war for them. McCrary is better than Pritchett, and Jenkins and Wiegert are upgrades over Lacina and Villarrial. Sims is also better than either of the two tackles, althought eh Bears do still have a second tackle spot to fill. Michael Myers was probably the Bears' best signee, and should be a better exchange for the retired Traylor. The Bears still have plenty of work to do, but I really think they are getting shafted unfairly here.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES

Roster Strength +/-: -8.9

Key Players Lost: RB Duce Staley, TE Chad Lewis, WR Todd Pinkston, WR James Thrash, OLB Carlos Emmons, CB Troy Vincent, CB Bobby Taylor, FS Clinton Hart

Key Players Signed: WR Darrell Jackson, TE Kris Mangum, CB Terry Cousin

Comments: There are no mistakes here. This free agency has gone about as bad as it looks. The Eagles lost three of the best defenders in the league in Emmons, Vincent and Taylor, and they signed just a mediocre Cousin to replace any of them. Jackson should be competent enough to replace either Pinkston or Thrash, but the Eagles need another receiver to share the load. Mangum looks to be the only upgrade the Eagles signed. They also lost their starting running back. I'm not sure it could get any worse, so it's pretty shocking there's still another team below this one.

OAKLAND RAIDERS

Roster Strength +/-: -9.9

Key Players Lost: QB Rich Gannon (ret), WR Tim Brown (ret), WR Jerry Rice, C Barrett Robbins, T Barry Sims, DE Trace Armstrong (ret), DT John Parrella, OLB Eric Barton, OLB Bil Romanowski (ret), CB Charles Woodson, FS Rod Woodson (ret)

Key Players Signed: WR Donald Driver, DE Greg Ellis, OLB Cornell Brown, OLB Steve Foley, S Victor Green

Comments: Even the Eagles can't touch this. Has any team ever been so devastated by free agency and retirement? And, remember, this includes the fact the Raiders managed to resign G Matt Stinchcomb, DT Dana Stubblefield, and SS Anthony Dorsett. All were top players at their positions in this free agency and in the league, and could have left like everyone else. The Raiders used some magic and managed to bring them back, though. Some guys just aren't recoverable, of course. Gannon was the top quarterback in the league. Rod Woodson was the best safety in the league. Romanowski and Armsotrong were both among the better players at their position, and Brown wrapped a long, successful career with a solid final season. And that's just the retirees. Rice, reduced to a backup, is also gone, along with two line starters besides the re-signed Stinchcomb. Stubblefield's partner Parrella is another top defender who is now gone, along with top corner Charles Woodson. Does the list ever stop? All in all, the Raiders had 12 starting spots to replace at the beginning of free agency. Brown and Foley will come in to replace Barton and Romanowski, although it is a step down. Green has the unenviable task of trying to replace Rod Woodson. Two areas the Raiders actually improve is at Armstrong's spot, where they bring in one of the league's best in Ellis, and at Brown's WR spot, where Driver is both younger and better. The good news doesn't go much beyond that, though. This team has gone from talent everywhere to struggling to fill holes in one quick offseason.

CR